Was Jesus sent only to the Lost Sheep of Israel, as He said? Yes, of course He was. But there is a bigger picture we all need to see. We need to read Jesus' own words within the context of the whole story, which goes back to a promise God made about 2,000 years before Messiah:
In Genesis 12, Moses writes about what Yahweh God told Abram, a man from Ur of the Chaldeans, or what is known today as Iraq.
1 The Lord said to Abram:
Go out from your land,
your relatives,
and your father’s house
to the land that I will show you.
2 I will make you into a great nation,
I will bless you,
I will make your name great,
and you will be a blessing.
3 I will bless those who bless you,
I will curse those who treat you with contempt,
and all the peoples on earth
will be blessed through you.
God chose Abraham to make of him a nation.
From that nation He would create a holy people, separated for His purposes. He made them distinct from all the other peoples for a reason. They would not dress as the others dressed. They would not eat as the others ate. And they would not worship as the others worshiped.
They were made a sanctified and holy people because out of that people would come the Promise to beat all promises. Out of them would come...
the Messiah.
The Messiah Whose very name announced His Message: Yeshua, which means "Yahweh Saves."
The Messiah Who would bring salvation for all.
To the Jew first, and then the Gentile.
Read again what Yahweh promised Abram (italics mine for emphasis):
"... all the peoples on earth
will be blessed through you."
Genesis 12:3
God's Chosen People have been richly blessed, but they have also suffered much. If we read our Bibles correctly, more of both are still to come. But neither the blessing nor the suffering have been pointless because, through it all, they serve the purposes of God... the fulfillment of His promise to Abram.
Yes, Jesus was sent only to the Lost Sheep of Israel. But that mission had a greater outcome that had always been a part of The Plan:
to bring Yahweh's salvation to all the ends of the earth!
See also:
Jesus and the Centurion (Lost Sheep Series)
http://apologika.blogspot.com/2015/07/jesus-and-centurion-lost-sheep-series.html
Did Messiah Come Only for the Lost Sheep of Israel? (Lost Sheep Series)
http://apologika.blogspot.com/2015/07/was-messiah-coming-only-for-lost-sheep.html
Jesus and the Samaritan Woman (Lost Sheep Series)
http://apologika.blogspot.com/2015/07/jesus-and-samaritan-woman-lost-sheep.html
1 The Lord said to Abram:
Go out from your land,
your relatives,
and your father’s house
to the land that I will show you.
2 I will make you into a great nation,
I will bless you,
I will make your name great,
and you will be a blessing.
3 I will bless those who bless you,
I will curse those who treat you with contempt,
and all the peoples on earth
will be blessed through you.
God chose Abraham to make of him a nation.
From that nation He would create a holy people, separated for His purposes. He made them distinct from all the other peoples for a reason. They would not dress as the others dressed. They would not eat as the others ate. And they would not worship as the others worshiped.
They were made a sanctified and holy people because out of that people would come the Promise to beat all promises. Out of them would come...
the Messiah.
The Messiah Whose very name announced His Message: Yeshua, which means "Yahweh Saves."
The Messiah Who would bring salvation for all.
To the Jew first, and then the Gentile.
Read again what Yahweh promised Abram (italics mine for emphasis):
"... all the peoples on earth
will be blessed through you."
Genesis 12:3
God's Chosen People have been richly blessed, but they have also suffered much. If we read our Bibles correctly, more of both are still to come. But neither the blessing nor the suffering have been pointless because, through it all, they serve the purposes of God... the fulfillment of His promise to Abram.
Yes, Jesus was sent only to the Lost Sheep of Israel. But that mission had a greater outcome that had always been a part of The Plan:
to bring Yahweh's salvation to all the ends of the earth!
Jesus is Lord!
See also:
Jesus and the Centurion (Lost Sheep Series)
http://apologika.blogspot.com/2015/07/jesus-and-centurion-lost-sheep-series.html
Did Messiah Come Only for the Lost Sheep of Israel? (Lost Sheep Series)
Jesus and the Samaritan Woman (Lost Sheep Series)
http://apologika.blogspot.com/2015/07/jesus-and-samaritan-woman-lost-sheep.html
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